Samsung Biologics sees highest-ever annual orders

Samsung Biologics said Tuesday that the company has signed five contract manufacturing deals to bring the total value of its annual orders this year to an all-time high of 3.48 trillion won ($2.7 billion).

According to Samsung Biologics’ regulatory filing, the company has recently inked one new and four expanded deals with a pharmaceutical company based in Asia.

The five contracts are worth a total of around 761 billion won, the company said. The new CMO deal is worth 589 billion won, and the value of the other four expanded contracts is some 172 billion won.

“The four expanded contracts were based on separate orders that Samsung Biologics secured in 2019,” an official from Samsung Biologics said.

The drug manufacturer, however, did not reveal the name of the company or give any details regarding the products that the company would produce in Songdo, Incheon, due to a confidentiality agreement with its client.

Samsung Biologics' CMO contracts often increase in volume based on client needs. In 2022, the company secured around 881 billion won through expanding 11 existing contracts. This year alone, the company expanded 12 existing contracts, which has already generated 1.16 trillion won in revenue.

“Samsung Biologics has been able to build mutual trust with its clients, including international pharmaceutical companies, which allowed the company to expand existing contracts,” a Samsung Biologics official said.

Backed by the latest signings with the Asian pharmaceutical firm, the value of Samsung Biologics’ annual orders has almost doubled from 1.78 trillion won in the previous year.

Samsung Biologics said that the operation of the company’s fourth plant, which has an annual production capacity of 240,000 liters, has allowed the company to secure new contracts.

“Samsung Biologics’ fourth plant still has room left for additional contracts, and the company is reportedly in discussions with its clients. The fourth plant will continue to help the company improve its performance in the future," an industry source familiar with the matter said.

The source added that Samsung Biologics could also raise its annual sales forecast again after the latest signing. Previously, the company had raised its annual sales forecast for 2023 to 3.6 trillion won from 3.5 trillion won.